Regulating device for a timepiece having a balance and hairspring



7a of the regulator.

United States Patent REGULATING DEVICE FOR A TIMEPIECE HAV- ING ABALANCE AND HAIRSPRING Edouard Loretan, La Rochette, Le Sentier,Switzerland Filed Dec. 18, 1958, Ser. No. 781,349

Claims priority, application Switzerland Dec. 26, 1957 Claims. (Cl.58-111) The present invention is concerned with a regulating device fora timepiece having a balance and hairspring, wherein the outer stop forregulating the active length of the hairspring is radially movable andis pressed elastically in the direction of the inner stop.

This regulating device is characterised in that the outer stop ismounted rotatably on the regulator and is fast with a control pinionmeshing with a fixed toothed sector, an abutment limiting the radialdisplacements of the said stop towards the exterior, the wholearrangement being such that when the said pinion is operated itdisengages partly from the said toothing, moving away the outer stop inopposition to the elastic device until said stop abuts against the saidabutment, thus unclamping the hairspring, and that the regulator is thenentrained.

One form of embodiment of the subject of the invention and a modifiedconstructional form thereof are illustrated by way of example in theaccompanying drawlugs.

Fig. 1 is a plan view of a regulating device for a timepiece.

Fig. 2 is a sectional view taken on the line II--II of Fig. l.

Fig. 3 is a sectional view taken on the line III-III of Fig. 1.

Fig. 4 is a sectional view of a detail of a modified constructionalform, taken on the line IV-IV of Fig. 5, and

Fig. 5 is a view thereof from below.

The regulating device illustrated comprises a hairspring support Imounted rotatably on the end-piece which is designated as 2. The outerend of the hairspring 3 is fixed to a lug 1a of the hairspring supportby means of a plate 4 supported by a screw 5. A fiat spring 6 moves thisplate away when the screw is released.

The regulator designated as 7 is mounted rotatably on the hairspringsupport 1. The stops 8 and 9 for regulating the active length of thehairspring are carried by a lug 7a of the regulator. The inner stop 8 isfixed whereas the outer stop 9 is mounted so as to be slidable in aradial slot 10 (Fig. 2) of the lug 7a. This outer stop is urged towardsthe inner stop by a Wire spring 11 which embraces the two stops, thusclamping the hairspring 3.

The outer stop 9 is also mounted rotatably on the lug It carries apinion 12 situated on the said lug and in engagement with a toothedsector 1b formed on the hairspring support 1. This toothed sector couldbelong to a shoulder of the cock, in the case of a regulating devicewhich is not provided with a hairspring support.

Regulation is eliected in the following manner: the balance being set byan adjustment of the angular position of the hairspring support 1, thelatter has no longer to be displaced and remains fixed. In order toregulate the active length of the hairspring 3, a screwdriver isinserted in a slot 13 formed in the pinion 12, whereby the said pinioncan be rotated. During this rotation of the pinion 12, a tooth of thesector 1b meshing with the pinion exerts on the top of a tooth of thispinion a force directed perpendicularly to its flank. Since "this flank,as it can be seen from Fig.1 of the drawing, is inclined with respect tothe radial line II-II, this force has a radial component. Now, thisforce is the higher as the regulator 7 is not freely mounted on thesupport 1, but frictionally. Moreover, since the pinion 12 is free tomove radially, this radial component of the force urges the pinion tomove radially, together with the outer stop 9, thus unclamping the hairspring 3. Once the outer stop 9 bears against the end of the slot 10provided in the regulator 7, the pinion 12 is prevented from displacingfarther radially, whereby the regulator is then driven. In this way, theregulator cannot be displaced until the hairspring has first of all beenliberated. It should be noted that when the pinion 12 reaches one orother end of the toothed sector 1b, it remains partially disengaged fromthe toothing, so that the stops thus remain spaced apart, which permitsthe hairspring to be put in position and removed.

The modified constructional form of Figs. 4 and 5 differs from the firstform of embodiment in that the inner stop 14 for regulating the activelength of the hairspring is not of circular cross-section but issubstantially rectangular in cross-section, one of the sides of thisrectangle being slightly convex so as to form a bearing surface 15 forthe hairspring (Fig. 5). The outer stop comprises a sleeve 16 which ismounted'freely on a roller 17 similar to the roller 9 of the first formof embodiment. This sleeve has a concave surface 18 in r the form of asection of a cylinder wall, against which the hairspring is supported.The latter is thus clamped over some proportion of its length, thusincreasing the accuracy of regulation.

A wire spring 19 provides the clamping action on the hairspring. Thiswire spring bears on the rollers 17, passing through a slot 20 formed inthe sleeve 16, so that it prevents the said sleeve from leaving theroller. The latter is fast with a pinion 21 which is in engagement witha toothed sector 22; the operation of this regulating device isidentical to that of the first form of embodiment.

What I claim is:

1. In a regulating device for a timepiece having a hairspringcomprising, a regulator, an outer and an inner stop on said regulatorfor regulating the active length of said hairspring, said outer stopbeing radially movable, and an elastic means urging elastically saidouter stop in the direction of said inner stop in such a regulatingdevice: a control pinion fast with the outer stop which is mountedrotatably on the regulator, a toothed sector with which said pinion isin engagement, and an abutment limiting the radial displacement of thesaid outer stop toward the exterior, whereby, when the said pinion isoperated, it disengages partly from the said toothed sector, moving awaythe outer stop in opposition to the said elastic means until the saidouter stop abuts against the said abutment thus unclamping thehairspring, to permit driving of the regulator.

2. In a regulating device for a timepiece having a hairspring,comprising a regulator, an outer and an inner stop on said regulator forregulating the active length of said hairspring, said outer stop beingradially movable, and an elastic means urging elastically said outerstop in the direction of said inner stop, in such a regulating device; aroller constituting said outer stop, a lug of the regulator providedwith a radial slot in which extends said roller which is mountedrotatably on the regulator, a control pinion fast with said roller,situated on said 111g, a toothed sector with which said pinion is inengagement, and an abutment limiting the radial dis- 'whereby, when thesaid pinion is operated, it disengages partly from the said toothedsector, moving away the,

outer stop in opposition to the said elastic means until the said outerstop abuts against the said abutment thus unclamping the hairspring, topermit driving of the regulator.

3. In a regulating device as claimed in claim 2, a sleeve mounted freelyon said roller and having a bearing surface in the form of a cylindricalwall, which is intended to co-operate with the hairspring.

4. In a regulating device for a timepiece having a hairspring,comprising a regulator, an outer and an inner stop on said regulator forregulating the active length of said hairspring, said outer stop beingradially movable, and an elastic means urging elastically said outerstop in the direction of said inner stop, in such a regulating device: acontrol pinion fast with the outer stop which is mounted rotatably onthe regulator, a Wire spring surrounding the two stops and constitutingsaid elastic means, a toothed sector with which said pinion is inengagement, and an abutment limiting the radial displacement of the saidouter stop toward the exterior, whereby, when the said pinion isoperated, it disengages partly from the said toothed sector, moving awaythe outer stop in opposition to the said elastic means until the saidouter stop abuts against the said abutment thus unclamping thehairspring to permit driving of the regulator.

5. In a regulating device for a timepiece having a hairspring,comprising a cock, a regulator, an outer and an inner stop on saidregulator for regulating the active length of said hairspring, saidouter stop being radially movable, an elastic means urging elasticallysaid outer stop in the direction of said inner stop, and a hairspringsupport to which the outer end of the hairspring is fixed and which isrotatably and frictionally mounted on the cock, coaxially with theregulator, in such a regulating device: a control pinion fast with saidouter stop which is mounted rotatably on the regulator, a toothed sectorprovided in said hairspring support and with which said pinion is inengagement, and an abutment limiting the radial displacement of the saidouter stop toward the exterior, whereby, when the said pinion isoperated, it disengages partly from the said toothed sector, moving awaythe outer stop in opposition to the said elastic means until the saidouter stop abuts against the said abutment thus unclamping thehairspring, to permit driving of the regulator.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS2,589,717 Marti Mar. 18, 1952 FOREIGN PATENTS 846,976 Germany Aug. 18,1952

